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A few days ago I finally made it a point to register online for the half marathon in the Standard Chartered Singapore International Marathon scheduled for 07 December.

It suddenly occured to me that I haven't been to Singapore for ages. In fact I haven't been travelling abroad for a while now. Then I thought of the passport requirement, and I couldn't remember if my passport was still valid. I reckoned that it must have expired by now.

So I walked to a nearby photoshop to take a passport-size photo of myself for the purpose of a new passport. It must have been years ago since the last time I took this kind of photo. They've gone digital now. Within minutes I had my photos printed out; and they no longer give the negatives like in the good old days. Instead they copied my photos into a CD.

Incidentally, I have also received a call from Mr Randy Chong, the incoming President of the Rotaract Club of Kota Kinabalu. They will be having their installation night on 04 October. I have written a short message for their souvenir magazine, and he requested me to provide him with my passport-size photo.

Then I remembered that I've been meaning to upload my photo into my profile in this blog, but somehow never actually took the trouble to do it—until now. It's been a year since I started this blog. Well, better late than never, I guess.

However, I happen to know that some people out there have too much time; they'd use that extra time to doctor people's photographs so that it would appear that they're doing things which they don't [The Star]. I hope no one would go through the trouble to meddle with my photo. Not that I am a politician, so I guess there is not much use to do that. But even if they did, at least have the decency to choose a beautiful and sexy woman for the model.

Oh by the way, my passport is still valid after all. It will expire in 2011. Well, at least I'm still making use of the photos I took.

Wild Dogs

A bunch of dogs are sleeping peacefully. A naughty boy comes along and pours boiling hot water onto them. The dogs cry out in pain and then become wild. They react instinctively; they start to attack the people around them. Havoc ensues; everyone runs for cover...

What a mess!

We wouldn't want to find outselves in such a place, but if you are given the authority to impose a punishment, who would you punish, the dogs or the boy? [The Star]

IF I made a racist comment and that resulted in chaos in the country, should I be punished or should we punish those who reacted to my racist comment?

Aliens

There have been numerous estimates of the number of foreigners living amongst us in Sabah. Some of them, presumably relatively few of them, are here legally. The vast majority of them have probably been here for ages—illegally. The estimates vary widely from several thousands (probably these numbers originated from Government officials) to several hundred thousand people.

Whatever the actual number is, I think it is quite safe to assume that many Sabahans are convinced that it's just a matter of time that these aliens will outnumber us citizens. Generally speaking they multiply in numbers at a much faster rate than Sabahans.

The Government had repeatedly pledged to rid Sabah of these aliens since decades ago, most notably prior to the general elections. But of course it would all come to nothing in the end. The eastern towns of Tawau, for example, is practically controlled by the Bugis. They actually have Malaysian ICs—they are "citizens". Just stop any mini-bus in the street and chances are it's a Bugin man who owns that bus. They control many other businesses too.

In KK, things haven't been that bad. We've had a 14-year old boy stabbed to death in broad daylight near the central market by 2 Filipinos because he refused to give them RM1. Many people saw what happened but were afraid to help. In another case, a woman was stabbed to death near SEDCO because the man wanted her handbag so much. Her young teenage daughter who tried to block those stabs to protect her mother got several fingers severed, but she survived. She went through many hours of surgery to reattach her fingers.

More recently, 2 officers from the KK City Hall were beaten up—again in broad daylight—by foreigners because they consficated smuggled cigarettes from a 21-year old woman [Daily Express].

This whole thing about the Government going all out to flush out these aliens is just a big joke. We have heard that story too many times in the past, and it's really getting boring to hear the same story again. When I think of my 6-year old JJ, I just can't imagine what kind of Sabah she will have when she gets to my age. It all seems so hopeless.

But on the other hand, sometimes the authority can become very, very "efficient" too. They carried out their job so well that they could put a Malaysian citizen into prison for almost a year because they mistakenly thought she's an illegal. She would have probably been in prison for a much longer time but for the coincidental opportunity of someone to alert a VIP about her [The Star].

She was finally rescued and now a free woman again. She said she wanted to put the nightmare behind and start afresh with her baby. I think what she should do is to find a lawyer, perhaps a pro bono case, to sue these people for the mistake. And yes, sue the Government too. She's not likely to win, of course (what d'you expect, this is Malaysia!), but at least there is a good chance that these people will be very, very careful the next time they do their job.

Borneo Marathon—Running On Empty Tank

Before I embarked on my marathon training almost 2 months ago, I did some thorough research on the internet. I read widely on marathon training. I sought practical advice from friends who I know are experienced runners. I researched on diet and other beneficial habits of the marathon runners. It all culminated in a training schedule which I have been keeping up up to now. But the one thing that I overlooked was the fact the I would fall sick during those weeks leading up to the marathon day.

On Tuesday, as I had planned, I ran 10 km on the treadmill. It was an hour's run and wasn't as punishing. I was supposed to run another 10 km to 12 km on Thursday before doing the long run—18 km or about 19 laps of the Likas jogging track—on Saturday. But by about 3 pm on Thursday afternoon, I began to feel a bit dizzy. And then later I felt nauseous. It all happened so suddenly and I was worried. I left the office shortly after 5 pm, and all the way home I was fighting to control from vomitting in the car. Upon reaching home, I couldn't hold any longer; I rushed to the toilet and I vomitted out everything I had for lunch that day. It was horrible; it was just bad timing. I had been looking forward to my run that evening.

After that I suddenly felt weak—extremely weak. I remained calm, had a quick warm shower, and then went to bed, intending to rest for a while. But I wasn't meant to run that evening. The moment I hit the bed, my whole body seemed to shut down. I went into a deep sleep. I heard Mia and JJ arrived home later. Very briefly, I told Mia what had happened. She brought me some panadols, but they didn't really help. Throughout the night I suffered some more; it was like hell.

Early the next morning, I called up my staff to inform her that I won't be coming in to work that day. Then I continued to sleep. I woke up again at around noon. I felt so tired, but a little stronger than the day before. Then I drove out to a nearby clinic to see a doctor. The diagnosis was quick: dehydration.

As a habit, I would normally have a cup of coffee at the office every morning. And of course coffee contains caffeine. Caffeine is within a group of substances known as diuretics. All diuretics increase the excretion of water from the body. Coffee has a very major effect on me—one cup can make me visit the toilet every 15 minutes for hours. Sometimes, during a busy day, it is just so easy to forget to replenish the body liquid by drinking sufficient water. Anyway, that is one lesson learnt the hard way.

The process of rehydration is not as simple as one might think. To start with, it is not just about gulping up gallons of water. Trust me, when you are feeling nauseous you are unable to drink big quantities of water anyway—at least not at one go. Dehydration can also cause loss of appetite. But again it's not easy to eat when you feel like throwing out all the time.

Well, I spent most of Friday in bed feeling very impatient. But I had to wait for my body to gradually rehydrate. By yesterday (Saturday), I was feeling much better, although I haven't regained my appetite to eat. Mia, JJ and I went to Lintas Plaza for my favourite fried mee hoon, but even that didn't help. Half a plate was all that I could force into my stomach. Later in the afternoon, I had some canned peaches. That was all I could eat for the whole of Saturday, although I kept drinking small amounts of plain water at regular intervals.

Then first thing this morning, when my alarm clock rang at 5 am, I forced myself out of bed to go for my long run. Little did I know that it was to be my most challenging run so far. I arrived at the jogging track shortly before 6 am. The weather was perfect. A little bit of warming up, stretching, and then I was off.

18 km is about 19 laps (each lap is 950m). I had planned to have 2 "pit-stops" in between for drinking, i.e. after the 6th and 12th laps. Let me tell you running on empty tank is different; you just don't have the energy. By the time I completed the 6th lap, I was already panting and sweating profusely. But I dragged on for the following 6 laps, and each lap decreasing in speed. By the time I completed my 12th lap, I was already seriously entertaining the idea of giving up. That few seconds I stood there drinking my 100PLUS, I considered what to do.

The long runs are one of the most important elements of marathon training. Unless it's a matter of life and death, I must complete it, even if I'm unable to run all the way. So I decided to brisk-walk for a bit. "A bit" eventually became one full lap. After that I thought I might as well push myself by running just one more lap. That became 2 laps; and three; and four...and I finally ran the remaining laps, thus completing the entire workout in 1hr 56m 5s. Not an impressive time if I want to keep up my dream of running the half marathon in under 2 hours.

Looking at the bright side, however, this morning was the first time, ever, I ran for almost 2 hours. It is just amazing that my body can keep going for that duration. I really don't know what to expect for the 22 laps next weekend. But even if I can't achieve it in under 2 hours, I guess I still have a few more weeks to work on my pace. All this hardwork better be worth it!

November Challenge

Immediately after I concluded my KK Challenge 4 a couple of months ago, someone in the audience asked me the customary question: When is your next hunt? Unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly difficult for me to find the time to organise hunts.

The long school holidays will start in early November. I am aware that some of my friends, including treasure hunter friends, usually make plans to go for holidays abroad. Hopefully, I am still in time to catch you people before you finalise your travelling plans. If it's possible, please try to keep the second half of November free.

Yesterday we have initiated serious discussions for a proposed treasure hunt, tentatively at the end of November. Right now I am not at the liberty to release any information; just that it seems very likely to materialise. No—this has nothing to do with the Sutera Harbour-Angkatan Hebat Hunt.

I have been invited to compose a hunt, and although I would have prefered to hunt instead of setting the hunt, I might just make this one an exception. Considering the financial background and reputation of the organiser, I have a feeling that the top prizes will be attractive enough for the big boys from the west to venture out to this land beneath the wind. Sabahan hunters should therefore be prepared for a stampede from the west! Most of you in KK probably have a very good idea who's the organiser. Who else could it be!

Don't worry, if indeed I end up clerking this hunt, I will try to be kind to you all. Those who've joined my hunts before will know that I do only pure hunts, i.e. no Amazing Race nonsense! Once I get the confirmation from the organiser, I shall make the official announcement here.

The Professional Clerk-Of-Course (CoC)

Over the last week, we have had a very lively debate over at Mike's blog. The forum attracted in excess of 100 comments—easily a record for that blog—although not counting the old blog which was plagued by spams. A major portion of that debate centred on a mistake by the Clerk-of-Course (CoC), resulting in the wrong order of the top winners in the Media Category of that hunt. However, after several days, the matter was resolved with the CoC taking full responsibility for the mistake; and the affected teams duly rewarded for their respective victories.

While this episode is still fresh in our minds, I'd like to write my thoughts on this issue, i.e. the responsibility of the CoC, from the general point of view, and not specifically pointing to the NPC Hunt only.

Although I am not going to dwell on the twist of events in the NPC Hunt, it is necessary to understand the nature of the mistake in order to appreciate the eventual decision of the CoC. Briefly, the CoC, upon the closing of the end station embarked on marking the submissions of the teams. He then arrived at the overall results of the hunt. However, perhaps out of habit, he decided to make another round of checking. Unfortunately, before he could do that, some of the treasures were removed from the bags submitted by 2 teams. Of all the bags, those were the ones submitted by the top 2 winners of the Media Category. Consequently, upon the second check of the scores, the top two winners came up short on points, resulting in a fall in positions to 4th and 6th places respectively. The winners were announced and these affected teams later checked with the CoC on the missing points. Well, the mistake was discovered and as I said, after a few days' deliberation, the CoC decided to compensate the affected teams and rewarded them for their respective victories. It is noted that the CoC had to fork out the compensation from his own pocket.

The (mis)handling of the treasure bags before the final count of the scores was not a proceeding to be recommended; that was inviting trouble. But of course it is easy to give such comments from the sidelines. We all know that famous line—hindsight is always 20-20.

CoCs are not immune from making mistakes. It's not the first time that this kind of mistake has happened. In fact, a little over 2 years ago, Mike made an almost identical mistake too. He marked a wrong treasure submission as correct, and because of that the lucky team was announced the 2nd place winner, thus pushing the deserving 2nd place winner down to 3rd place. However, that lucky team comprising Ramesh, Kok Seng, Soo Khian and Shandra alerted Mike on the possible mistake. Upon re-checking the scores, Mike made the brave decision to announce his mistake and switched the 2nd-3rd positions. Interestingly, Mike used his own money to pay the RM500 difference in prize to the deserving 2nd place winner; yet allowing the now demoted team (from 2nd to 3rd) to keep the prize money they had already received.

As you can see, the mistake in the NPC Hunt was not the first time it has happened. And I am inclined to believe that sooner or later, a similar mistake will happen again. The question we should ask ourselves is:

Should CoCs be made responsible for such mistakes?

I think the answer should be yes. In fact, I think that responsibility should be emphasised and then incorporated into the term of engagement. That's what being professional is all about. Many CoCs, when lobbying for jobs to clerk hunts, have the tendency to undercut on their fees. They have no foresight of their responsibility in case anything should go wrong.

I think it is time that when CoCs quote their fees to potential clients, they should reflect on their heavy responsibility. The nature of that responsibility should be clearly explained to the potential clients. Mistakes might not happen all the time (unless if that CoC is a total idiot), but once it happens, it's gonna be painful.

It has been suggested that some kind of bailout measures be initiated where hats are passed around, and everyone is encouraged to contribute RM5 to help out the CoC. The idea seems to receive positive responses from 2 hunters, but I doubt that it is a very popular idea.

If I made a mistake in my work for which I charge a "professional" fee, and as a result of that mistake my client suffered losses, I doubt that anyone will start a bailout plan for me. The tort of negligence is much more complicated than that, of course. But the basic principle is the same. The CoC owes the duty of care to his clients, and in the event of his clients suffering losses due to his mistake, he must shoulder the consequences. After all, the hunters pay good money to hunt. Although the idea of "having fun" is the one that usually sells, at the end of the day the satisfaction of winning the prizes still counts. I am not talking about the amount, mind! Even winning RM500 might mean a lot to many people.

Borneo Marathon—Surviving Sixth Week

The 6th week of training is the last week of August. After this, I have roughly 5/6 weeks to go before the Borneo International Marathon on 12 October. Although my training is progressing well, I haven't actually achieved 21 km in a single run up to now. If all goes well, I should be getting there in 2 weeks' time.

I have made a slight change in my training programme. Instead of running 4 days in a week, I have, beginning from this week, reduced it to 3 times a week. The reason I did that was because so that I can work on my mileage. If I were to slot in another running day, I wouldn't have enough time to recover for the longer runs. So with only 3 runs per week, I will cover at least 10 km per run. Apart from the slight change, this 6th week was also special to me because it was the first time I did my long run at the jogging track instead of on the treadmill. The last longest outdoor run I've done was only about 10km.

Before going for my long weekend run, I received an advice from an experienced runner. Amongst other, he told me that protruding nipples may be subject to chafing during long runs. That was the second time he told me that. The first time he told me, I found that somewhat amusing and did not really heed his advice. I mean, how could something that small and insignificant be injured? That was until I had a terrible blister on my left nipple! And having blisters on the nipples is not very funny you know. So this time, armed with my newfound knowledge—learned the hard way—I had both nipples plastered before the run!

I had intended all along to do the long run during the marathon clinic on Saturday afternoon. But of course the weather hardly ever agree with outdoor plans in the afternoon. Unfortunately, YFitness was also closed over the holidays, so I was unable to fall back on the treadmill.

I did not want to miss on my long run (long runs are very important elements of marathon training), so I had no choice but to wake up at 5 am yesterday (Sunday) and make that run at the jogging track. Just for the record, I am not really a morning guy. It's the first time I woke up that early for the purpose of running. But, you know, when I do something I'd like to do it well. Otherwise I'd rather not do it at all.

When I left the house, Mia and JJ were still sleeping. Just before I left the house, I whispered to Mia that I'd be home at around 8 am. She mumbled something to me, but I couldn't really understand her. I went closer to her and was able to hear; she said, "Try not to get raped." I told her not to worry, we're very far from Permatang Pauh.

I was surprised to see quite a number of people at the jogging track. It was still quite dark when I started running at around 6 am. A bit of stretching, warming up and setting my stopwatch. The air was cold; the weather was perfect. I started running...

It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The cold morning helped to delay the onset of my body's "overheating". I ran at a slow easy pace for the first 5 km. By then there was already daylight. Suddenly I realised that Dr Liaw was also running. When we were running side-by-side, he said he's running the full marathon for the first time, and I was a bit shy to say that I was only training for the half marathon. He's quite a strong runner; oh how nice to be young!

After running 6 km, I stopped for a few gulps of 100Plus. And then quickly continued with the run. Then another stop after the 12th km. I felt strong and picked up the pace for the remaining 3 km to finish 15 km within 1 hour 27 minutes 20 seconds. Now I only need to figure out how to maintain that average pace for the remaining 6 km to complete the 21 km run.

Compared to the last time I did 15 km on the treadmill, I took about 12 minutes faster to run that distance this time. But I think the improved time was mainly due to the extra one day rest I had for this latest run.

Another new week ahead with a scheduled 18 km run on Saturday followed by that dreadful 21 km the following week. By now I am confident that I will certainly be able to finish that distance. The only question now is the speed at which I can complete it. My realistic goal is 2 hours 15 minutes; but my ambitious goal is under 2 hours. I hope I can report better achievements in the following weeks. But on the other hand, right now the time achieved during the training is for rough guide only. Before the actual marathon I should have rested my legs sufficiently.

In the mean time, I have also signed up for the Penang Bridge International Marathon scheduled for 16 November 2008. That will be an even bigger challenge since the distance is about 25 km. Furthermore I was told that there will be a gradual slope at the start of the bridge. I am also entertaining the idea of running the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon (7 December 2008), of which Mia will be joining me for the half marathon; and the Great Eastern—Pacesetters 30 km (18 January 2009). My friend who introduced me to these runs has a nice way of putting it—they give the opportunities to go for short holidays in interesting places!